Reeling apparatus



Feb. 6, 1962 0 M. MORGAN 3,020,000

REELING APPARATUS Filed Nov. 27, 1957 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 IN V EN TOR.

7721 77Z'ran BY yes 0g 1962 M. MORGAN 3,020,000

REELING APPARATUS 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Nov. 27. 1957 a i 42 L I J 40390. U O 45 x g ,36 INVENTOR.

'myles morgan 3 I H oTney 3,020,000 REELING APPARATUS Myles Morgan,Worcester, Mass, assignor to Morgan Construction Company, Worcester,Mass, at corporation of Massachusetts Filed Nov. 27, 1957, Ser. No.699,314 4 Claims. (Cl. 24281) This invention relates to a reelingapparatus and more particularly to apparatus arranged to coil theproduct of a rolling mill or the like.

In steel mill practice, it is common to coil the product of a rollingmill in a so-called pouring reel. In this type of reel, the product,such as rod, is projected into a lane between two concentric rows ofreeling pins, and these rows of pins are rotated about their commoncenter so that the rod isformed into a coil. In the past, the rod hasbeen projected between the pins by means of a guide 'or pipe whichextended through the wall of the reel on a level somewhat above the topsof the pins, particularly of the outer row of pins, with the angle ofthe pipe such that an imaginary extension lies between the pins. In this'type of reel, however, the coil is discharged by raising a'coil plateto the level of the top of the housing, the pins remaining behind.Because of this, it has been necessary that the rod pipe extend into thehousing only a short distance, otherwise it would interfere with theupward movement of the coil plate during the discharge of the coil.Because of the considerable distance, then, between the end of the rodpipe and the annular space between the concentric rows of pins in whichthe coil was to be laid, it could not be said that the' rod ispositively guided into place. One difliculty commonly ex- "periencedbecause of this is that the rod has a tendency to climb upwardly alongthe inner pins, particularly at the end of a rod. This is because,during the passage of the front of the rod into the reel, the rear endof the rod is still in the mill and the rod is pushed; however, when therear end of the rod is entering the reel there is no pushing action fromthe mill and the reel must act as a capstan to draw the rod through theapparatus. At times, therefore, there is considerable tension in the rodand this, combined with the high angle of approach of the rod throughthe pipe causes the rod to climb up wardly onthe inner pins. Thisupwardly climbing not only causes a poorly formed coil, but alsopresents the danger that the rod may'feed upwardly on the inner pins andgo over the top of the pins. These and other ditliculties experiencedwith the prior art devices have been obviated in a novel manner by thepresent invention.

It is, therefore, an outstanding object of the present invention toprovide a reeling apparatus in which the entrance pipe is capable ofmovement from an operative posiuon within the reel to an inoperativeposition entirely free of the reel.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a reelingdevice of the pouring type having inner and outer concentric rows ofpins and an entrance pipe which may be moved during reeling to aposition closely adjacent the inner row of pins.

.of apparatus for moving a guide pipe associated with a pouring reelfrom a position closely adjacent the inner pins during coiling to aposition entirely exterior of the reel housing during discharge of thecoil. V I

With these and other objects in view, as will be apparent to thoseskilled in the art, the invention resides 3,020,060 Patented Feb. 6,1962 in the combination of parts set forth in the specification andcovered by the claims appended hereto.

The character of the invention, however, may be best understood byreference to certain of its structural forms as illustrated by theaccompanying drawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a plan view of a reeling apparatus embodying the principlesof the present invention.

FIGURE 2 is a sectional elevational view of the reeling apparatus takenon the line Il-II of FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 3 is a vertical sectional view of a portion of the apparatustaken on the line IIIIII of FIGURE 4, and

FIGURE 4 is an inclined sectional view of the apparatus shown in FIGURE3, taken on the line "IV-JV of FIG- URE 3.

Referring first to FIGURES 1 and 2, wherein are best shown the generalfeaturesof the invention, the reeling apparatus, indicated generally bythe reference numeral 14 is shown in use with an output portion 11 of arolling mill and a discharge conveyor 12. The level of the conveyor 12is indicated by the dotted lines and the reference characters 0-0 inFIGURE 2. The reeling apparatus consists of a housing 13 of circulartubular conformation with a vertical axis, containing a drive plate 14extending horizontally therethrough and having two rows of concentricpins 15 and 16 connected thereto. The upper edge of the housing 13 is onthe same level c-c as the conveyor 12, and the inner pins 16 extend tothis height also. The outer pins 15, however, are considerably shorterthan the inner pins, as is evident in FIGURE 2. A coil plate 17 isslidable over the pins from a position at the level of the conveyor to aposition closely adjacent to the drive plate 14. A shaft 18 is providedfor the actuation of this member. A push-off arm 1h is pivotally mountedat 21 to the housing 13 in such a manner as to be swingand this end isprovided with a hardened steel nozzle 26.

An actuator 27 is mounted externally of the housing 13 and acts toposition the guide pipe 25.

Referring now to FIGURES 3 and 4, which best show the construction ofthe actuator 27, the guide pipe 215, and the junction box 24, it can beseen that the outer end of the guide pipe 25 is provided with anoutwardly flared portion 28 which is aligned with the guide 22 of therolling mill. A pivot pin 29 is welded to the outer surface of theflared portion 28 and extends through an aperture .31 in a hinge plate32 welded to the inner surface of the junction box 24. A suitableopening 33 is made in the side of the junction box 24 to permit angularmovement of the guide pipe 25 about the axis designed by the pin 29. Anadapter block 34 is welded to the outer surface of the housing 13adjacent the top edge thereof, and this block is provided with aninclined face 35 to which is fastened a supporting plate 36. Theoutwardly facing surface of the supporting plate 36 is provided with anabutment 37 to which is fastened one end of a linear hydraulic actuator58, the other end of which has a piston rod 39 extending therefrom. Thepiston rod is suitably apertured and pivotally connected by a pin 39a tothe ends of two levers 41 and 42 which have a common hinged connectionto the piston rod. The other end of the link 42 is fastened to thesupporting plate 36 by means of a pivot pin 40. The same end of the link42 is provided with an actuating finger 44 for a use to be explainedfur- Jther hereinafter. A microswitch 45 is mounted on the supportingplate 36 in such a position that its actuating finger may be contactedon occasion by the finger 44 of the link 42. The other end of the link41 is connected by means of a pivot pin to one arm of a crank arm 43.The crank arm 43 is connected by means of a pivot pin 43!: to thesupporting plate 36. The other arm of the crank arm 43 is provided atits end with a slot 45a thus forming a bifurcation. The slot is slightlywider than the diameter of the guide pipe 25 and, as can be seen inFIGURE 4, the guide pipe always resides within this slot.

The supporting plate 36 is provided with an inclined upper edge 46extending at an angle approximately 45 degrees to the horizontal. At oneend of the edge 46 the supporting plate 36 is provided with abutments 47having a hinge pin 48 which not only extends through the abutments 47,but also through a closure bar 49 so that the closure bar is capable ofhinged movement about the axis of the pin 48. At the other end of theedge 46 the supporting plate 36 is provided with a bifurcation 51between which may reside the other end of the closure bar 49. A pin 52normally extends between the abutments to maintain the closure bar inplace.

The edge 46 and the lower edge of the closure bar 49 together form aslot 53 extending at an angle of around 45 degrees to the horizontal. InFIGURE 3 it can be seen that the inclination of the supporting plate 36to the horizontal is in the order of 60 degrees, the particular angleselected being such that the supporting plate 36 is at right angles tothe guide pipe 25 when the free end of the guide pipe lies in itsoperative position between the two concentric rows of pins and 16. Itshould be pointed out also that the pin 29 lies in a plane parallel tothe supporting plate 36 at a right angle to the edge 46 of thesupporting plate so that the guide pipe 45 is pivotally movable in aplane parallel to the edge 46 or in other words is movable within theslot 53.

The operation of the inventionwill now be readily understood in view ofthe above description. The rolled material, such as rod, arrives at thereeling apparatus through the guide 22 and passes through the guide pipeinto the space between the concentric rows of pins 15 and 16. The driveplate 14 is rotated carrying the pins 15 and 16 with it and this causesthe wire to be coiled as it emerges from the guide pipe 25. When theback end of the rod arrives in the reel, the coil is complete and theshaft 18 is moved upwardly to carry the coil plate 17 and coil with it.The coil plate carries the coil and eventually arrives at the level ofthe conveyor 12. At this level the coil is also free of the housing 13and the kickofi arm 19 moves across the top of the housing and pushesthe coil laterally across the coil plate over the edge of the housing 13on to the conveyor 12. It will be appreciated, however, that if theguide pipe 25 is left in the position shown in FIGURES l and 2 that thecoil on the coil plate 17 will strike it. Interference in this mannotbetween the coil and the guide pipe 25 may cause disruption of the coiland also prevent the coil from being moved 01? on to the conveyor bymeans of the pushoif arm 19. The actuator 27, therefore, is provided toassure that as the coil plate 17 rises vertically the guide pipe 25 ismoved into a neutral position where it does not interfere with the coilor the coil plate. In order to do this oil is admitted into the linearactuator 38 so that the piston rod 39 emerges from its cylinder. Thisnot only causes a rotative movement of the link 42 about the pivot pin40, but also causes a counter-clockwise movement of the link 41 aboutthe pivot pin by which it is connected to one end of the crank arm 4-3.Continued upward movement of the piston rod 39 causes the lower arm ofthe crank arm 43 to move to the right, and this, in turn, causesrotation of the crank arm about its pivot 43a, and a movement of theupper bifurcated arm of the crank arm to the left and upward. Movementof the crank arm in this manner causes movement of the guide pipe 25along the edge 46 of the supporting plate within the slot 53.

Movement, of course, takes place about the axis of the pivot pin 29within the junction box 24. The efiect of this is that the inner end ofthe guide pipe 25 with its hardened nozzle 26 is moved at an angle ofapproximately 45 degrees upwardly and laterally. The pipe, therefore,comes to rest in the position shown in dotted lines in FIGURES l and 2.At that time the pipe resides in the upper part of the slot 53 and thefinger 44 has contacted the microswitch which is connected in a mannernot shown so as to terminate the flow of oil to the linear actuator 38.

During the coiling of the rod the end of the guide pipe 25 and itsnozzle 25 lie well downwardly of the top of the housing 13 between theconcentric rows of pins 15 and 16. Therefore, rod emerging from thenozzle is constrained to a position which is at least below the end ofthe nozzle 26. In other words, as the back end of the rod emerges fromthe rolling mill and the wheel begins to act as a capstan, it is notpossible for the tension in the rod to cause the rod to move upwardlyalong the inner pins 16. The nozzle 26 in its lower position prohibtsthe movement which would otherwise take place, of the rod upwardly alongthe inner pins. Nevertheless, when it is desired to dischargea finishedcoil, the guide pipe and nozzle are moved well out of the reel into aposition in which they will not interfere with the discharge of thecoil.

It is obvious that minor changes may be made in the form andconstruction of the invention without departing from the material spiritthereof. It is not, however, desired to confine the invention to theexact form herein shown and described, but it is desired to include allsuch as properly come within the scope claimed.

The invention having been thus described to what as claimed as new anddesired to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A reeling apparatus for rod comprising a fixed tubular housing ofcircular cross-section, an inner and an outer row of pins mounted withinthe housing concentrically of the housing thereof for rotation about theaxis of the housing, a guide pipe extending into the housing and havingone end which resides in a first position between the rows of pinssubstantially below the upper ends of the inner row, a junction means towhich the other end of the pipe is connected for angular movementrelative to the housing in position to receive the rod, an actuatorconnected to move the guide pipe in a plane lying at an acute angle tothe said axis, means restricting the movement of the pipe to the saidplane, the actuator moving the pipe from the said first position to asecond position wherein the said one end is entirely removed frombetween the rows of pins and substantially above their upper ends aswell as outside an imaginary cylinder defined by the extensions of theouter row of pins.

2. A reeling apparatus for rod comprising an openended fixed housing ofcircular cross-section, an inner and an outer row of pins mounted withinthe housing concentrically of the housing for rotation about the axis ofthe housing, a guide pipe extending into the housing and having one endwhich resides in a first position between the rows of pins substantiallybelow the upper ends of the inner row, means to which the other end ofthe guide pipe is connected for angular movement relative to thehousing, an actuator connected to the intermediate portion of the guidepipe to move it in a plane lying at an acute angle to the said axis,means restricting the movement of the pipe to the said plane, theactuator moving the pipe from the said first position to a secondposition wherein the said one end is entirely removed from between therows of pins and substantially above their upper ends as well as outsidean imaginary cylinder defined by the extensions of the outer row ofpins.

3. A reeling apparatus for rod comprising a vertical fixed housing ofcircular cross-section, an inner and an outer row of vertical pinsmounted within the housing nfk concentrically of the axis thereof forrotation about the said axis, a guide pipe extending into the housingand having one end which resides in a first position between the rows ofpins substantially below the upper ends of the inner row, means to whichthe other end of the guide pipe is connected for hinged movementrelative to the housing, means defining a slot through which the guidepipe extends, the slot extending at a substantial angle to thehorizontal, and an actuator connected to the intermediate portion of theguide pipe to move it in an inclined plane along the slot from the saidfirst position to a second position wherein the said one end is entirelyremoved from between the rows of pins and substantially above theirupper ends as well as outside an imaginary cylinder defined by theextensions of the outer row of pins.

4. Reeling apparatus comprising a fixed housing, two concentric circularrows of pins mounted within the housing for rotation about their commonaxis, a guide pipe extending into the housing and having one end 20which resides in a first position between an inner and outer row of pinssubstantially below the upper ends of the inner row, the other end ofthe pipe being connected for angular movement of the pipe relative tothe said housing, and an actuator capable of moving the guide pipe in aplane lying at an angle to the said axis from the said first position toa second position wherein the said one end is entirely removed frombetween the rows of pins and substantially raised above their upper endsand lies outside an imaginary cylinder defined by an extension of theouter row of pins and means restricting the movement of the pipe tothe-said plane.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTSMcMullan Nov. 24, 1931

